


Rhyslationships

by DepressedCarrot



Category: Borderlands
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Best Friends, Crushes, Depression, Fluff, Fluffy, Hate, Jealousy, Love, M/M, Money, Regret, relationships
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-21
Updated: 2016-01-21
Packaged: 2018-05-15 09:52:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,339
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5781352
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DepressedCarrot/pseuds/DepressedCarrot
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hooked by the attention given to him by the Hyperion CEO Rhys fails to notice his best friend's affection. The CEO would provide Rhys with an expensive watch to cheer him up whereas his best friend Vaughn would give him a hug. What's worth more? </p>
<p>You can't buy love.</p>
<p>Rhyslationships include: Fights, jealousy, arguments, no faith, tears and disagreements. A real relationship fights through all of that with love. Except a real relationship doesn't involve Rhys. </p>
<p>If fluff isn't your thing, this isn't your thing.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Rhyslationships

**Author's Note:**

> I haven't written a series on ao3 before. *screams*
> 
> I have decided to take some of the ideas from a few of my current one shots and compile them into something bigger. Perhaps this can have some sort of Tarantino fan theory where all of the stories spookily connect in the same timeline? Just to confirm before that does happen, they are not connected. Just losely based off of one another. 
> 
> I have a strict smut rule. I only read, I do not write. If you're here to get smutty this isn't the right place, thought it would be nice to have a much more calmer relationship based fanfiction around Rhys, Jack and company. We'll save '50 shades of Rhack' for another time.

A cold wind wisped around the ankles of the tall man as he sat patiently at the bus stop for the next service of public transport to appear, tapping gently on the Hyperion briefcase sat on his lap impatiently. The January weather was doing nobody any favours, especially the low ranking employees of Hyperion catching the 7am bus into Elphis. 

Rhys’ teeth began to chatter at just the thought of having to sit around any longer. The lanky man crossed his arms and clenched his gloved fists. The weather report hadn’t mentioned anything about snow but there it fell, covering the Hyperion workers cowering around the bench. Rhys looked up towards the grey morning sky allowing the snowflakes to grip tightly onto his hair and eyebrows. The sensation relaxed him among the chatter of staff and the distant groans of the bus down the damp road into the town. 

As the bus pulled up Rhys slowly stood to his feet obnoxiously being pushed out of the way so the other freezing workers could be the first ones onto the bus. It wasn't like anyone really cared at Hyperion, it was a simple ‘dog eat dog’ work environment. Rhys hesitantly stepped onto the bus showing his pass immediately and carrying the black and yellow briefcase over to the nearest vacant seat. 

He hated it when there was nobody to offer him a lift in. His roommate was sick and wasn't going into work himself. Sure, Vaughn would get complained about by his superiors but it was better than coming to work feeling half dead. Although that didn't really make much difference from what commonly occured. The majority of Hyperion employees were assholes who had been overworked to the point of exhaustion.

It was one of the biggest companies in the world, it was hard not to expect a bulk of the employees to be overworked and underpaid. However getting to say you worked at Hyperion was a bonus in itself, telling people you worked there opened a vast amount of doors for any future you wanted. 

Rhys was lucky to even be accepted into the classes at university which gave him a solid Hyperion internship. He was one of the best programmers in his class, however missing one day of the internship through a stomach virus cost him the job he desired and deserved. Instead he got stuck into data mining where all of his potential was wasted on picking out information which was deemed useful. Unlike himself. 

But he was working at Hyperion. The Hyperion. That was a large achievement, not a lot of people could say they were able to do the same. Family meals at Christmas resulted in everyone desperately wanting to know about two things, Rhys’ job and Rhys’ love life. His parents were mainly focused on the job side of things whereas his sisters were more intrigued by whatever juicy gossip they could harbour in the current year.

Whatever Rhys told the sisters to keep them quiet usually ended up backfiring. For example getting constant text messages from them asking about the relationships. Part of him hated it and the other half of him adored the attention. He got pretty home sick the majority of the time as he thought about being back home with his family. Being in another state and Rhys not being able to drive made the whole journey a whole lot more difficult. 

He missed the apple pie his mother would make every week when he was younger and the hot chocolate that warmed his entire body on days such as the chilly Friday morning. Rhys would have done a lot just to taste the warm beverage on such a cold day, he was confident his nose would instantly freeze and just slide off of his face. 

The young man attempted to make out the shapes of the passing buildings through the blizzard outside. Blinking occasionally and sighing deeply Rhys could never get used to it. Days like this made him want a car, it was surprising the buses were even running due to the snow that had fallen over the past week. Piling up and then washing away. He would have called in sick but he had learnt the consequences of doing so, if he was sick the ill man would force himself to go into the workplace just making the sickness worse. 

After a good amount of time the bus stopped dramatically in front of the largest structure in the city. Known as Helios, the headquarters of the largest multinational technology company Hyperion. Everyone knew of the company and nearly all technology was designed in the very building stood before the rusty bus. If you owned a Hyperion mobile phone it was because of the name, not because of the capabilities the device had. In fact Hyperion devices weren't even that great, Dahl devices were a lot better at their job. 

A Hyperion device was a sign of wealth. Many people who didn't even have a lot of spare cash still saved up for some form of an Hyperion product. It was ridiculous, but that was just how the company made its money. With one of the wealthiest men in the country running the show, Hyperion was unstoppable. 

“ID cards please.” A bearded man at reception grumbled at the line Rhys had joined to allow access into his workplace. Fumbling around in his coat pocket Rhys swiftly retrieved a plastic ID card, already exhausted from the journey into Helios all the poor man wanted to do was get to his desk and start his busy day at work. If he was lucky there wouldn't be a lot there, allowing him to possibly go home earlier than usual. But that was a pipedream, Rhys had never been able to go home early. 

Rhys slapped the ID card against the scanner as usual, waiting patiently for the green light to clock him in and let him through. 

The device began to obnoxiously ring only for Rhys to have the bearded man glare at him through vicious eye contact.

“Step to the side please Sir.” The man with the forest like blonde beard directed. Rhys’ eyes widened at the comment, this had never happened before. He had always been let through first time, what could the problem possibly be? 

As everyone in the hall shifted their eyes towards the scene Rhys slowly shuffled to the side, hand clenching the card tightly in shock. A brunette woman with her hair neatly tied in a bun on the top of her head began to walk towards a dumfounded Hyperion worker. The security tag on her shirt told Rhys everything he needed to know. 

“State your name, ID number and floor.” The woman demanded not even bothering to make eye contact with the taller man in front. Instead she snatched the ID card out of Rhys’ clenched fist. 

“R-Rhys Echo, 031214 floor 4.” Rhys stuttered at the question. This was the first time he had ever been stopped, the security in Helios was surprisingly strict. 

The butch woman raised an eyebrow as she attempted to match the photograph on the plastic card to the bewildered young man. After a few seconds she handed the card back and nodded her head confidently. 

“All clear but I suggest getting the chip inside your card re-registered. Recently updated the system and some of the profiles have not transferred correctly. I'll let you off for today.” The formal member of security stated as they flipped open a black notepad before jotting down some form of a simple record. 

Rhys cleared his throat as silently as he could, pocketing the ID card and attempting to smile. 

“Thank you.” He coughed tightening the grip on the briefcase with anxiety and frustration. From there on out Rhys was aware of the fact that the bad day had set out to become one of the worst day in a long time. 

Walking through reception and feeling quite embarrassed from his experience with a mere ID card Rhys made his way to the elevators. Which of course were out of order. 

After a long trek up the large quantity of steps Rhys found his seat at the messy desk, surprisingly he wasn't late. The desk was riddled with papers, a computer and various photographs printed out and stuck on the cubicle wall. There was a few Hyperion issued posters meant for some form of inspiration however Rhys just stuck them there to admire the CEO in question. 

Standing tall in all of the posters Handsome Jack really was as handsome as the company stated. He was a true role model for a vast amount of employees and even young people that just looked up to the man for his success. There was a lot of rumours about the CEO, some so unorthodox they were hard to believe. 

Rhys put the briefcase on the floor by the side of the desk as he sat down and composed himself. He had lost his train of thought as he stared blankly at the photos stuck to the thin walls. Not only was there posters of Handsome Jack there was also images of Rhys’ family. One picture that stood out in particular was the photograph of Rhys and his two sisters at a theme park a good few years ago. His mum had taken the photograph, Rhys was reluctant to have his photo taken at the time but it came out alright. Another one just happened to be a picture of him, Vaughn and their other co-worker Yvette that they had also met through the internship. 

Rhys began his day at work by going through a few papers and typing them up, it was like every other day. What made this one day different was the bad luck the hapless young man had experienced in the morning. Rhys desperately wanted to call Vaughn to tell him all about the terrible morning but his friend was ill, more than likely tucked up in bed binge watching his favourite show. 

As it neared the end of the day Rhys began to pack up his things and sort the last few papers. Although he didn't manage to go home particularly early it wasn't as if he was going to be working later than usual. 

“Leaving so soon?” A regrettably familiar voice sounds from across the half empty office. It really was Rhys’ unlucky day. 

Hugo Vasquez, Rhys’ boss on his floor. The man with the slicked back hair and neatly trimmed beard haunted everyone on the fourth floor of Helios. He was no Handsome Jack but that didn't stop him from wanting to play the act of the big bad wolf. It was true, Vasquez had a lot more power over mere workers such a Rhys but he was nowhere near as powerful as other superiors on the higher floors. The higher you were in Helios the more power you were ascribed.

Rhys bit down on his lip as expensive shoes clicked against the flooring behind him. Preparing to turn around the young man threaded his fingers through his hair and took a deep breath inwards. 

“Sir. I've completed all of the p-papers for today. I was just about to put them in your office.” Rhys choked slightly, turning around to see the smug higher ranking employee holding a smaller yet still large stack of papers in one hand and a mug of coffee in the other. 

“You're far from finished. Who else will be my data extraction monkey? There's not a lot of other people here, unless you want the water cooler to do your job?” Vasquez stated the question with a proud smirk spread across his face. 

“No Sir. But can't I do the papers tomo-” Before Rhys could even finish his sentence Vasquez had pushed the papers into his spindly hands. Only a few seconds ago grasping his bag, ready to leave work on the cold Friday night. 

“Tomorrow? No Rhys, I want the papers on my desk tonight before you leave. They’re no good to me on a Saturday afternoon, they’re good to me bright and early on a Saturday morning” Vasquez corrected before taking a long sip of the warm beverage in his hand. Rhys stood gormlessly holding the papers without a single word spilling from his lips. 

The stack of paper wasn't as thick as the stack he had to sort through earlier but it was at least half the size. Still enough to take up a good few hours of his night. All he wanted to do was to go back to the apartment he shared with his best friend and play video games all night. Perhaps share a blanket on the couch and watch a movie? That was what his usual Friday nights contained. Not whatever the hell was happening in his current situation. 

Rhys let out a long sigh as he watched Vasquez stroll out of the room without a care in the world. Vasquez would get to go home and relax whilst Rhys was stuck in the lonely office highlighting documents only for him to type up the next day. 

The tall man slumped back down onto the uncomfortable spinning chair and stared at the uneven ceiling panels before eventually getting to work. By the time Rhys had put the papers onto Vasquez’ desk it was pitch black outside, the next bus probably didn't arrive for the next few hours. Even then it would just have been a lucky guess. 

After making his way down the long set of stairs Rhys entered the lobby he was in earlier when facing his ID card dilemma. However now, instead of being packed to the brim with employees only a few security guards lurked around the front. This time when pressing his ID card against the reader it delightfully chimed allowing him access to the outside world immediately. If only it was that easy on letting him into the building. 

Snow was still falling gently onto the ground below, Rhys perched himself on the bottom step of the building's entrance right beside the road. His coat getting wet from the contact with the thin layer of snow on the step.

He could have potentially called Yvette for a ride but Rhys knew better than that, it was a Friday which meant she'd either be out with him and Vaughn or with the group of girls she spoke to in the staff room. Yvette had attempted to hook some of the girls up with Rhys once before and although they seemed extremely interested in him Rhys had said many times before he wasn't interested. 

It was sometimes as if Yvette didn't want to accept the fact that her one of her best guy friends was gay. She claimed it didn't bother her but if it didn't then the constant attempt to match poor Rhys up with unexpected girls wouldn't occur. Rhys had never really been attracted to women, although he'd had previous relationships with females. That was mainly due to his sisters hooking him up before he came out to them openly. 

Another option on the call list would be Vaughn. However it would have been cruel to drag him out of bed when it was nearly midnight and he was full of sickness. 

Rhys just exhaled deeply at the side of the dark and lonely street attempting to connect to 3G in order to find the number of a local cab driver. The connection was crappy and wasn't getting anywhere successfully. 

But before Rhys could scream and release all of his anger built up throughout the day and throw his phone against the concrete whilst yelling ‘you piece of shit’ three black cars rolled by. The young man in the black jacket looked up to see a long and luxurious car boxed in by two different cars as if they were some form of security. Rhys had never seen a more expensive looking vehicle in his entire life. Even the bonnet sparkled as snowflakes fell onto the black paint, reflecting under the streetlights.

All three cars suddenly came to a halt. Rhys couldn't help but stare at the spectacle before him, it was something that he had never seen before.

Once the vehicles had stopped a large man with sandy brown hair stepped out of the first car. Rhys wasn't going to lie, the man was buff and extremely good looking. But the baby faced male sat by the side of the road quickly removed them thoughts from his mind as new ones entered. All he could think about was how the people in the three black cars could possibly kidnap him. Rhys may never seen the outside world again, wishing now he had texted or called Vaughn or Yvette goodbye. 

“ID card.” The large man instantly demanded as he strolled over. It certainly wasn't the first time during the terrible day he had been asked the question. A bluetooth piece in his ear and a fitted suit made the man much more intimidating than he would have been without. 

Rhys fumbled with his pockets desperately trying to retrieve his card as yet another large man walked up behind the first member of some form of security. Rhys reached upwards and gave the first man the security card as fast as he possibly could. 

The sandy haired male passed the card back to the other member of security behind who quickly jogged over to the back of the second car and passed it through the rolled down window. 

Rhys’ heart was beating faster than it had ever done before, he was certain he was about to fall onto the floor and go into cardiac arrest. There was no doubt about it. 

The first guard looked directly at Rhys, listening contently to whatever was being said through the Hyperion brand bluetooth positioned inside his ear.

“It's your lucky day. Looks like the boss wants some company on the way home.” 

“B-boss?” Rhys stuttered at the thought. He felt sick to the stomach at the fact it could possibly be Vasquez inside the fancy car. In fact, it could have been any of the higher ups on the other floors of Helios. 

“You'll see. Just get up and get into the back of that limousine darling.” The large man commanded. There was no way Rhys could refuse, he had never fought anyone in his entire life. He couldn't outrun the men either, there was far too many and he was about fifty percent certain the guard by the car had a pistol inside his holster. 

Rhys stood up slowly and began walking towards the blacked out limousine, there was no telling who could have been sat in the back. Perhaps this was some kind of joke from Vaughn? Maybe a surprise birthday party? He knew that was just over a month away but it was still relatively close.

The man stood by the vehicle opened up the back door of the limousine. The sort of limousine he remembers clambering in the back of for his parent’s wedding. However that was when he was just a small boy and had only been part of the family for a few months. Although now when he thought back he had been part of the family his entire life. Memories of his biological mother were vague. 

The seats were a beautiful cream leather and the instant heat circulating inside slapped Rhys in the face when escaping from the door. It made a change from the blistering cold Rhys endured sitting outside. 

He slowly clambered inside, not sure what to expect or where he would be taken. But as he positioned himself into the seat nearest to the door he slowly looked up to see the very face he had seen multiple times on billboards, posters, television advertisements and much more.

“Hey kiddo. How you doing?” 

There it was. The same voice that was also on the radio advetisements. 

Handsome Jack.


End file.
